Gangsters destroy distilleries in the name of Islamic purity

Eight distilleries providing most of the spirits produced in Iraq have been burned and looted by Muslim gangs claiming they are purifying the country of alcohol, which is forbidden by Islam.

The attacks came as no surprise to the factory owners, who have spent the past month in a desperate attempt to get protection for their businesses. "We went to the American soldiers, we went to the United Nations and we went to the police academy, but not a single door was opened to us," said Shaker Isa Jibrail, owner of two factories.

All the US forces did was take his gun, making him one of the few people in Baghdad without a weapon. "They disarm me and leave me defenceless in the face of criminal gangs. I cannot go near my property for they will shoot me. Every time I leave home, I fear my family will not be there when I come back," he said.

Mr Jibrail is spokesman for four factory owners who estimate that they have lost £15.5 million. They are Christians, as the alcohol trade is restricted to them, though many Muslims indulge behind closed doors.

They knew that, in a country with a majority population of Shia Muslims, the booze business was not going to thrive. They went to an Islamic cleric, who witnessed a joint pledge to turn their factories over to medical and industrial alcohol and stop producing gin, whisky and arak. But this served no purpose when the mob came.

Related Articles

"This never happened under Saddam," said Mr Jibrail. "The Americans can take Baghdad in 48 hours but claim they cannot stop looters. Why do they allow Kurds to buy looted cars by the thousand and take them to the north? The Americans want to put looters and gangsters in power over us."

A trip to Saadeh, 20 miles east of Baghdad, confirmed everything the factory owners said. A gang was looting the remains of one of the distilleries, knocking down the walls and taking the bricks.

One of the guards - now joining the looters - said 400 men armed with guns and rocket launchers arrived just before sunset and fired the building. "They poured the poison away like a great river," he said.

The drinking public sees a dark period of intolerance ahead. At the Honey Store, which sells imported alcohol, the salesman, Adel Saeed, was not surprised to hear of the destruction. "We are expecting them here one day," he said. "We can defend ourselves, or maybe we will just have to close until better days come."